


The snow hare and the hound [Short version]

by AnAntagonist



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe - Youkai, Canine attack, Hinata Okuri-Inu, Japanese Mythology & Folklore, Komaeda Yuki-Hare, M/M, Mild Blood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-15 04:01:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29057889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnAntagonist/pseuds/AnAntagonist
Summary: This is a short version of one of my fics. This is only fr me to use as sample and applications. Please, read the full version ♥ Thank you.Full version in English: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28493889Versión completa en español: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28493823
Relationships: Hinata Hajime/Komaeda Nagito
Comments: 2
Kudos: 24





	The snow hare and the hound [Short version]

As though walking under a flour sifter, the merchant accumulated snow on both his shoulders as he advanced down the stairs. The night had surprised him on the way out from the temple deep in the mountain. In the dark of the road, the paper lantern’s flame swayed at the end of its stick with each step taken.   
  
His attention was caught by the murmur of a large hare digging into the snow. The man stopped for a moment, observing the animal. Naively it sensed no danger, neither from the man, nor from the red, penetrating eyes that also observed from the depth of the woods, beyond where the light reached.  
  
_“If nighttime on the mountain roads catches you alone, from the shadows will follow you the Okuri-inu. Be careful. The great hound will follow your every step, with its red eyes fixed on your feet, waiting for something to make you trip.”  
  
_The heavy gaze was noticed by the traveler who, moved by sudden terror, began to retreat and return to his path, all with slow movements. The silence of the woods was now evident, too unnatural. Not even the hare’s digging remained; the animal had stopped and curiously stood on its hind paws, its ears raised up, backed by the two long and thin leaves that seemed part of them, like blades of spring grass. Its olive eyes, too profound and intelligent to belong to a mere animal, stayed fixed on the man.  
  
Now, overly conscious of the way he walked, he found it hard to advance quickly. His nerves made his knees tremble more than the cold. And those red eyes that followed him intermittently disappeared and reappeared between the wide tree trunks.  
  
The expected then happened and the stone stairs, slippery from the ice, made him stumble and fall, rolling several steps down and losing his lantern as well as one sandal.  
  
_“And if by chance you trip… you can count yourself among the dead, since the great hound will pounce and make you his dinner.”  
  
_A shadow emerged from the woods. The traveler had no time to get up before a wild bark made his blood run cold, paralyzing him. He could only see a creature of dark fur and a flash of white and red before feeling the pain on his arm. The man’s screams echoed in the silent mountain.  
  
As big as the beast was, as sharp as its fangs were, death under a canine wasn’t something clean and quick. Much less if the prey resisted as he did, frustrating the animal’s every attempt at reaching the neck with his already wounded hands and forearms.  
  
The hare then appeared, having reached the scene on agile hops. Its white body charged against the dog’s face, using its strong hind legs to hit its snout and make it retreat with a pained whine. As it pulled away, it fell beside the stone steps, stirring a smokey cloud of snow, and as its figure was somewhat lost among it, there appeared that of a young man with thick white hair and skin as pale as moonlight, dressed in a light summer kimono.  
  
“Run! Don’t stop! Have hope and live your life to the fullest! Don’t look back!” His light voice urged the traveler.  
  
Not wasting his chance, the man dragged himself away, leaving large red drops of blood behind. Surrendering his lantern he just lifted himself and ran away with all his might.  
  
The attacking beast had taken steps back. Shaking its head, it ran its paw over its snout trying to mitigate the pain. Confused by what had just happened, it took precious seconds to recover and notice its dinner had escaped.  
  
He could still reach him if he hurried. But as he leaped, a weight prevented him from advancing. When it lowered its gaze it saw, buried in its dark fur, the white puff that was the boy’s woolly hair. He hugged the hound around the waist, clinging with white fingers to fistfuls of fur. The canine growled and barked, clearly expressing its annoyance in an attempt to intimidate him quickly and recover his prey.  
  
“Leave him be! If he goes on his way you can’t attack him again! He’s walking!” The screams sounded like pleas. From among the white hair, swayed by the head movements, long pale ears fell to the man’s back, and behind these could still be seen the two green leaves.   
  
Growling in frustration, the dog finally took its human form, ending up sitting in the middle of the road with the hare boy on his lap, hugged to his waist.  
  
“No! That’s if he goes the whole way without tripping! He tripped! So he’s mine!” He growled out, finally pushing the other away more easily with his human hands, though not refraining from using a foot to kick him farther.  
  
The young canine stood up. Unlike the other, he wore an outfit appropriate for the season. The snow was brushed off the thick, mottled gray winter fabric, same as the brown fur haori warming his shoulders. Atop the brown hair, two large wolf-like ears rose, as well as a curved tail on his back.  
  
_“But there’s hope! If you just trip, quickly pretend that it hasn’t been an accident! Sit on the ground and loudly say: how tired I am! Or pick something off the ground as though it was your intention, so you can fool the youkai and save your neck.”  
  
_“He didn’t trip. He was tired, there wasn’t much light, he was just catching his lantern that fell.” The hare’s quick excuses only made the tan-skinned canine sigh, closing his eyes in exasperation. After speaking, the hare also rose, fixing the light fabric of his kimono. Without an extra coat, it seemed like the youkai was confused about the time of the year they were in. “Besides… he’s already far away. He’s about to finish his way. If you’re hungry… you could use me as your dinner.” He said. His bony hand gestured toward his chest, yet his eyes avoided the predator’s.  
  
“It doesn’t work that way. If you haven’t tripped...” He hadn’t even finished his sentence when the hare simply took one step and let himself fall on the snow. The dog grumbled, fed up. “You’re faking it! You’re not even traveling! Are you messing with me?!”  
  
From the ground the other smiled, before rising back up and again brushing the snow off his clothes. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I thought it might work, but aside from being big and bad, you’re also a smart wolf. By the way, my name is Komaeda.”  
  
The other huffed. “I’m not some big bad wolf, like in a kid’s stupid tale. If you even care to know.”  
  
The hare widened the smile he already wore. His long ears stood up. “I’m all ears, mister wolf.” Without another word he started down the road, in the opposite direction in which the human had fled.  
  
The hound instinctively followed. “To start with, I’m not a wolf, I’m a dog. Call me Hinata,” he mumbled quickly, before breathing in and speaking more at length. “Many know just the part about failing on their way and losing their lives, but they conveniently forget the part about how, while they’re walking, I’m taking care of them. No wolf, thief or any other youkai will attack if I’m with them…”  
  
“Would you watch my path, then?” The request came without hesitation nor fear.   
  
The canine stared at him with eyes open wide, confused, it had been years since anyone had voluntarily asked him for his care and he’d become used to being feared, to finding empty roads at night. He nodded and lowered his ears against his head.  
  
“I came to visit my friends today. Our ancestors made a promise to make a good deed every new moon, and so we follow it, meeting every new moon at the temple.” He pointed an explanatory finger in the general direction.  
  
_“Many centuries ago, when humankind began to stray from its peaceful path and malice began to contaminate their souls, four fellows found themselves so anguished at such a future prospect that they decided to do something. These four friends made a promise to perform one charitable act every new moon in an attempt to instill goodness in the hearts of men.”  
  
_The canine raised his eyes to the sky, where the round and bright moon reigned over the night. “And what kind of good deeds did your friends do? You could consider the promise kept, you did something charitable for that man.”  
  
“Charity isn’t the sole act of saving a life.” The hare’s footsteps halted before a fox statue. “They gave that man their own food, while I… had nothing to give. Just like with you. On the contrary, I took yours. It’s an awful thing to do. And you must agree, you were quite angry at me.” He smiled, tilting his head to look at him, one long ear falling against his face.  
  
_“At sunset on the day of the promise, as the four friends returned, they came upon a hungry beggar. With great skill, the money climbed a tree to mitigate the man’s hunger with kaki fruits. The otter, meanwhile, used its fishing ability to bring him a fresh catch, and the fox brought a mountain mouse it had nimbly hunted… however, the hare had nothing it could give.”  
  
_“But you offered yourself…”  
  
_“With nothing to offer, the hare braced itself and leaped towards the campfire, only to be caught by the beggar’s hands.”  
  
_Komaeda blinked a couple of times before shrugging and smiling wider, as if what the other had said was the most adorable thing his large ears had heard. “I had nothing else, and even then I wasn’t enough, but I understand. I’m skin and bone at this time of the year.”  
  
“It wasn’t because of that, I already explained. Tsk, you don’t listen, you’re ignorant about my tale and you assume too much. You really are foolish.” Frustrated, the dog shoved his hands into his sleeves.  
  
The white-haired man just answered with a smile before turning towards the woods, wordlessly passing by the fox statue and walking a short distance.  
  
“This is my home, ergo, the end of my road,” he suddenly said, having stopped in the middle of what looked like just woodland.  
  
Hinata looked around, but couldn’t find any kind of house or den on the ground. Without asking, he just looked back at the other expectantly, both his ears and his tail raised. “So? Aren’t you gonna give me something? Anything will do. Ah… and clean your paws.”  
  
“I know your legend well. I’m aware of what to do, but I don’t want to. I hope you’ll keep your part, Hinata-kun~” The hare said in a sing-song voice.   
  
_“There’s one way to be rid of the demon dog, if you manage to make it to the end of the road safe and sound. Turn to him and leave an offering, anything at all. Before you enter your home, clean your shoes, and you’ll never find him on your way again.”  
  
_Hinata looked wide-eyed at the hare, surprised by what it was deliberately asking of him. Slowly he nodded. He’d watch over the hare’s path every time it walked through his territory, and would continue until he cleaned his shoes or tripped on the way.  
  
Komaeda turned back to him and was lost behind one of the many thin tree trunks. The white-barked birch trees shone silver when the moonlight came into view over the grove, displaying clearly the shadows of its craters, in which Hinata thought he saw one resembling a hare.  
  
_“The beggar that had caught the hare showed his true form as a deity, and in gratitude, granted the hare a dwelling on the moon for the rest of eternity, so that the whole world would know of the altruistic deed it had performed.”_


End file.
